Wandsworth Conservative councillors have today (4th March) published a damning report into the broken manifesto pledges of the Council’s Labour administration.

At the May 2022 elections to Wandsworth Council, Labour outlined multiple pledges in its local manifesto “Ambitious for all: Wandsworth Labour’s Manifesto for the 2022 Local Elections” and the accompanying document “Wandsworth Labour’s Housing Plan”.

The Conservative Party’s report, published this morning, sets out the Labour administration’s failure to deliver what it promised Wandsworth residents.

It will debated by councillors this evening in what is the final meeting before May 7th’s council elections.

In total, at least 41 of Labour’s 2022 pledges have not been delivered, including:

A commitment to provide the “same low Council Tax” as under the previous Conservative administration, and to “cut Council Tax” in its first year. Labour raised tax every year, by 8.2% overall.
The pledge to “spend every pound of [resident’s] money wisely” has been junked in favour of £1 million worth of new political advisors, a £175,000 increase in the councillors’ allowance bill, and an unprecedented budget shortfall of £137 million.
The promise to “build 1,000 new council homes” has not been kept. Since May 2022, fewer than 400 new homes have been completed.
Despite vowing to implement “a rent freeze” for council tenants, Labour has never frozen council rents. Rents paid by council tenants have increased by a cumulative total of 24% since 2022.
A pledge to council tenants and leaseholders of “the highest levels of service” has been broken, with the Regulator of Social Housing giving Labour the second worse possible rating and criticising its housing services’ “serious failings”.
A pledge to “build the kind of homes that local people really need” has been broken, with Labour responsible for a 43% reduction in housing delivered per year in Wandsworth.
Labour’s 2022 pledge was unambiguous: to “drive forward change” on the “congested and polluting Wandsworth One-Way System.” Transport for London (TfL) abandoned the long-promised one-way system removal/redesign in summer 2025.
Locally, Labour promised to “create 1,000 new apprenticeships by 2026”. There is no evidence that the administration has met this ambitious target, with fewer than 150 apprenticeships announced by the Council.
A fully referenced summary of Labour’s broken promises is attached.

Cllr Aled Richards-Jones, Leader of Wandsworth Conservatives, said:

“Labour have broken their promises. They said they’d cut council tax – but they’ve increased it. They said they’d build more homes – but they’ve built fewer homes. They said they’d deliver 1,000 new apprenticeships – but they’ve delivered barely a fifth of that.

“This Labour administration must now take responsibility and apologise for its failure to deliver for local people.

“On May 7th, residents have a clear choice between high-tax, low-delivery Labour and a Conservative team with the experience and competence to get Wandsworth back on track.”